This invention pertains to portable cooking devices, and more particularly to portable cooking devices having retainer means to safely secure cooking utensils above a burner device.
Various portable cooking devices have been developed for indoor or outdoor use. These cooking devices operate with various fuels, for example, wood, charcoal, electricity, liquid fuel or bottled gas. These devices are adaptable to allow various methods of cooking and various cooking utensils to be employed with a single unit. Food can be fried in a pan or on a griddle, boiled or deep-fried in a large pot, or grilled or broiled on a grill attachment.
Examples of portable cooking devices of such type can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,553,524 to Wheat et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 3,763,846 to Schantz et al.
These portable cooking devices are by nature built to be used in various locations and will be placed on a variety of surfaces. These surfaces can vary from a table top to concrete pavement to grass to a vehicle tailgate, and therefore it is apparent that many situations may arise where the cooking device is used in a potentially unstable position. In addition to this, the known portable cooking devices are designed to use utensils which merely rest on top of the unit or sit within a small retaining shoulder. This design exposes the user to a hazardous condition, especially when a large pot of water or oil is heated to high temperature, such that a slight shifting of the cooking device or someone sliding the cooking pot off center can result is spillage of the hot oil or water onto the user.
Therefore, there is a need for a portable cooking device having a more stable configuration. There is a need for a portable cooking device having a safety feature which protects the user from the danger of burns from hot oil or water. There is a need for a portable cooking device having a safety feature which securely retains cooking utensils on the surface of the device.